The present invention is related to a method for producing liquid steel from iron ore. More specifically to the improved method of sponge iron production in either batch or continuous reactors, combined along with the melting and refining of steel coming from said sponge iron. It has been broadly demonstrated that iron ore in lump or pellet form can be efficiently and economically converted into sponge iron in moving bed, batch, fluidized or kiln reactors.
It is usually desired to convert the sponge iron produced in such reduction processes to molten form. A number of methods have been proposed for this effect. They disclose continuous processes to obtain molten iron and use it to produce steel. The molten iron is obtained in a container for the fusion of sponge iron and the continuous carbon gasification.
These processes are subject to a number of disadvantages due to the continuous production and give as a product a molten iron that has to be refined subsequently. This refining can be achieved in a basic oxygen furnace.
Another disadvantage of these processes is that they can not use any type of carbon.